6. Chapter 6
Jake
I got to the coffee shop early again today in the hope of seeing Seren.
Was I delusional? Most definitely. But it was away from the stadium, and I had high hopes to keep Nate out of it for now because he didn’t know that Seren was the coffee shop woman I’d been dreaming about for the last week.
The universe really said, here’s a perfect woman, but spoiler, she comes with a Nate Davis warning label.
I leaned against the counter while the barista worked on my order, the familiar hiss of steaming milk filling the small space. Macchiato, extra hot. Always the same.
I wasn’t even entirely sure this was part of her routine.
For all I knew, last week had been a one-off stop, and I was currently building my morning schedule around a coincidence.
But I was trying to think of ways to be around her without Nate busting a vessel.
I lied to him last night at Pour Decisions when he asked if I’d seen her this week.
Well, maybe not totally lied; I did see her, but only once in the hallway.
It was enough to realize Nate Davis’s sister was firmly planted in my mind as someone I didn’t want to forget.
Her shy awkwardness was endearing and so fucking cute that it was hard to admit that I didn’t want to see her again.
Which is how I found myself standing here at seven in the morning, pretending this was about caffeine.
I was one hundred percent going to be late to training again, but I couldn’t care because the door swung open behind me, the bell chiming softly, and the smile that crested my mouth was genuine and so fucking pleased to see exactly what I’d been manifesting.
Seren walked in with her son balanced on her hip.
The kid was talking animatedly about something I couldn’t quite catch, his small hands moving with serious conviction while Seren listened with the kind of patient attention I wondered if all mothers had.
Her light sunshine hair was pulled back today, a few loose strands escaping around her face, and she was wearing training gear again. The dark blue contrasted her light hair and skin, making her glow.
She slowed mid-step when she spotted me.
“Jake,” she said as she reached the counter beside me, one eyebrow lifting. “You’re…here. Shouldn’t you be at the stadium already?”
“I can’t pass up good coffee,” I said with a shrug. “Hey, little man,” I greeted him with a fist bump, to which he grabbed and cackled about it.
“Truck,” he announced proudly, really rolling the r this time.
“That’s right,” I agreed with widened eyes, nodding. “You’ve got a good memory.”
Seren smiled at her son. “Cai, this is Jake. He works with Uncle Nighty.”
“Nighty!!” Cai squealed, trying to levitate with excitement over his…Wait…
“Nighty?” I asked, knowing I’d heard her say it before.
“Cai calls him that.”
Joy burst in my brain, as did a million ways I could roast my best friend about this. “Oh, Seren, you have given me the best gift.”
“No,” she said immediately, pointing a finger like she could physically stop the thought process happening behind my eyes. “You are not allowed to use that.”
I clutched my chest, wounded. “You cannot drop something like that into my life and expect me to behave responsibly.”
Cai, meanwhile, was bouncing happily on her hip, chanting, “Nighty! Nighty!” like he’d just discovered his favorite word in the English language. It was fast becoming mine too.
Seren sighed, though the corner of her mouth twitched, trying not to laugh.
“He couldn’t say Nate when he first started talking,” she explained. “And it stuck.”
“Oh, it’s definitely sticking now,” I said, already mentally filing it away for future use. “Don’t worry, I’ll use my new superpower wisely.”
Before she could respond, the barista slid my cup across the counter.
“Macchiato, extra hot. And extra hot latte with caramel cold foam.” Both cups were there, exposing the fact that I’d memorized her order and did it without knowing for a fact she’d be here. Loser status, I’m sure.
“Do you…” She paused, tilting her head at the cup, then at me. “Did you order that for someone else?”
I looked at the cup, then her, and realized that I’d been doing this for over a week without success.
Just drinking a drink that wasn’t mine, or sometimes throwing it away when she didn’t appear.
I could’ve taken it to the stadium, but that made me a little insane…
This was totally within the realms of sanity, though.
Now she was here, though, which meant I could own it in a way that made my chest grow by two sizes, at least.
“No, Seren,” I said, reveling in the fact that I now knew her name too. “I got this for you.”
The cute line between her eyebrows deepened as she stared at the to-go cup. “But you didn’t know I’d be here.”
“I’m not a stalker,” I said quickly, “or a weirdo. Just a guy who wants to buy a girl a coffee. Since I didn’t get the chance on our first meeting, I’m making up for it now.”
She didn’t deflate. In fact, she looked as though she was holding all the air she could in her lungs, and she did it all while balancing a toddler on her hip. I was about to ask if she was alright when she blew out a wobbly, “Okay.”
“Are you sure? Because you don’t have to drink it if it’s not your order, or if you just don’t want to.
” My shoulder lifted, faking casual. “Just so you know, I’m all for women doing whatever they want to.
Is accepting a drink from me stifling you somehow?
I hadn’t thought of it like that. If you want to pay for your own drink, then that’s fine. Consider me not offended.”
I became painfully aware that I had talked far longer than a normal person probably would in this situation. The time for playing it cool had well and truly disappeared. Which was fantastic.
Somewhere between I got this for you and you don’t have to accept it, my mouth had apparently decided we were delivering a TED Talk on the ethics of buying women coffee like this was my first time on earth.
She cleared her throat and hid her smile behind her hand. Then her light eyes lifted to mine, and there was a glisten there of something that drew me in more. “Well, I’m very grateful. I don’t really know what else to say except thank you, Jake.”
All the heat suddenly tried to escape through the apples of my cheeks. “Yeah, anytime.”
She took the cup, leaning closer to me, and the subtle scent of marshmallows wrapped around me like a cloud of sweetness.
I wanted to inhale and rub my face into the side of her neck to get more of it.
But I knew that would be ridiculous. Stalker coffee effort was one thing. Sniffing her was entirely different.
Cai pointed at the cup, and Seren moved it out of his reach.
“Hot, baby,” she said.
“Hot, baby,” he repeated. I laughed because, man, kids were so freaking cute.
I’d never really been around many, except for some of our team’s families, but I could tell Cai was a good kid.
To be expected, I guess, when your mom was this cool, and your uncle was too.
Though I couldn’t tell him that without his ego inflating.
Cai was lucky to have people around to raise him and love him.
For the first time since meeting her, I found myself wondering about Cai’s dad, but I left it where it was. Didn’t feel like my place to go digging. Not yet.
“So are you headed to the stadium?” I asked, holding the door open for her.
“I’ve got to drop Cai at daycare first.”
The warm Californian sun greeted us as we stepped outside, the air bright and already warming the sidewalk. I tilted my face toward it for a second, silently hoping I could convince Coach or Connor to move at least part of today’s training outside.
“Is it far from here?”
She shook her head. “No. Everything’s close enough that I walk most days.”
“You walked?” I looked at her with a pinched brow, remembering the way she’d been shuffling down the hallway the other day. “Even after training, when you were practically limping?”
She huffed a laugh. “Yeah, that was a very painful walk home.”
“Well then,” I said, nodding toward the corner where my truck sat, “allow me to dramatically improve your day. I can drive you.”
Her eyes flicked to the truck, then back to me.
“You, uh, I mean, thank you, but you don’t have a car seat,” she pointed out gently. “At least I’m assuming you don’t.”
Ah. Yes. Children required equipment. And planning. And a level of responsibility I was deeply unqualified to comment on.
“Ah, yeah,” I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck. “That feels like an oversight on my part.”
She laughed softly. “Plus,” she added, shifting Cai on her hip, “I actually need to loosen my muscles before training today, so the walk helps.”
I nodded, then beeped my truck, suddenly feeling ridiculous that I was driving and she was walking, but I was helpless to do anything about it.
“Truck!” Cai yelped as soon as the blinkers went off.
“Yeah, that’s right, buddy,” Seren said, trying to make sure he didn’t leap from her arms. The fact that she managed to do that without spilling her coffee was impressive. Moms really were superheroes. “I’ll catch you later, Jake.”
Yes, she would.